Summary
- Sarah Michelle Gellar is confirmed to reprise her role as Buffy in a reboot, bringing the Slayer back to TV.
- A Buffy revival needs to balance old and new characters, like Scream did to stay fresh and engaging.
- The success of a Buffy reboot may hinge on introducing new Slayers to carry on the mantle.
It looks like the Hellmouth is opening up once again. While Sunnydale is just a smoldering crater in the ground, Buffy the Vampire Slayer is ready to sink its fangs into a new generation of viewers. While fans have been here before, Sarah Michelle Gellar is officially locked in to reprise her role as the titular Slayer for a Buffy the Vampire Slayer reboot. If true, it brings Buffy back to the small screen for the first time since season 7 ended in 2003.
Joss Whedon’s 1992 movie of the same name is something of an underrated cult classic starring Kirsty Swanson, but it was Gellar that helped bring Buffy to life for the hit series, which ran for 144 episodes from 1997 to 2003. There’s been a lot of talk about a Buffy revival over the years. While the story continued in Dark Horse Comics’ canonized comics through to Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Twelve, a live-action return has been in the cards for a long time.
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Buffy the Vampire Slayer Needs to be Careful With its Legacy Characters
Despite plenty of buzz that Gellar would reprise her role as the no-nonsense Slayer, it took until February 6 to confirm it on her Instagram. Early reports said Hulu was nearing a deal to revive Buffy the Vampire Slayer, with the Oscar-winning Chloé Zhao tipped to helm it and Gellar appearing in some capacity. It was also claimed that Whedon will have no involvement, with Deadline reiterating:
He has not worked in Hollywood in any official capacity since facing a slew of misconduct allegations in 2021.
Gellar’s return doesn’t come as much of a surprise, especially considering she spoke openly about the idea of reprising her role as Buffy Summers. Although originally saying she was ‘done’ playing the character, Gellar admitted that seeing the work that’s been done in terms of returning to the Sex and the City and Dexter franchises (herself starring in Dexter: Original Sin) might have persuaded her to pick up her crossbow once again. The former show lead hasn’t revealed exactly how much fans will see of her, but there are questions about what a Buffy revival will look like if she’s no longer the main character.
It would have always been hard to call the project Buffy the Vampire Slayer without Gellar. However, doesn’t mean she has to be the focus all over again. Zhao would be wise to take a leaf out of Scream’s book and the franchise’s handling of legacy characters. In spite of the Scream series looking like it was done after 2000’s maligned Scream 3, it was resurrected for the equally divisive Scream 4 in 2011. Despite again looking like it had died a death, 2022’s confusingly named Scream took fans back to Woodsboro and was a master class in how to balance new blood and familiar faces. Looking ahead, 2026’s Scream 7 is poised to bring back the OG final girl in the form of Neve Campbell’s Sidney Prescott.
Some put Scream 4‘s failure down to its focus on new characters like Emma Roberts’ Jill and Hayden Panettiere’s Kirby, but in reality, it killed off most of its new additions and left the original three alive to fight another day. This left it without other characters to carry it through into a new era. It’s a major coup getting Gellar to return to play Buffy all over again, but like the Scream series tried to evolve beyond Sidney Prescott, a Buffy revival needs a new story to tell. After appearing in 2022’s Scream and 2023’s Scream 6, Melissa Barerra’s Sam Carpenter looked like she was the ‘new’ Sidney. That’s no longer the case due to behind-the-scenes drama, meaning it’s unclear how her arc would have continued in Scream 7.
Gellar is obviously the star attraction here, but to truly bring back old fans and give the Buffyverse another chance on the small screen, a younger Slayer or Slayers have to pick up the mantle. Buffy tried this a couple of times. While there’s not enough recognition for Bianca Lawson’s short-lived Kendra, Eliza Dusku’s Faith became a standout addition to the cast. The hard-as-nails replacement Slayer went on to star in Angel, share a comic miniseries with Angel, and was even supposed to get her own live-action spin-off series at some point. Like how Scream struck gold with Sam being loosely tied to the franchise of old, the Buffy revival needs another plucky Slayer to step out of Buffy’s shadow.
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This Isn’t the First Buffy Reboot
Importantly, this isn’t the first time a return to the Buffyverse has been announced. Alias’ Monica Owusu-Breen was supposedly working on a reboot in 2018, although it was an outing that Gellar distanced herself from. Like the 1997 series was a full reboot of the movie, that iteration of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was expected to start again. While nothing was ever confirmed, it was rumored to recast Buffy with an African-American actor and hope to modernize the story to focus on more modern issues. Things slipped into development hell until executive producer Gail Berman announced it was ‘on pause’ as of August 2022. Now that Gellar has confirmed her involvement in the next chapter of the Buffyverse, it can follow the ‘requel’ idea of 2022’s Scream.
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Like how the newer Scream movies have also made the most of Courteney Cox’s Gale Weathers, a Buffy revival needs to get more of the old crowd back. Core members of the Scooby Gang like Nicholas Brendon’s Xander Harris, Alyson Hannigan’s Willow Rosenberg, and Anthony Stewart Head’s Rupert Giles feel like must-have inclusions. Giles mentored Buffy throughout the show’s original run, so it’s easy to imagine the latter taking on a similar role this time around. Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 7 already leaned into this with the inclusion of the Potential Slayers and a return to the ever-complicated Slayer Line. If Buffy doesn’t take on the ‘Giles role,’ Hannigan’s Willow would also be a popular choice.
By including a mix of new characters and the old guard, a new series of Buffy can also increase the shock factor by killing off some fan-favorites. Buffy the Vampire Slayer had plenty of tragic deaths. Just as Scream (2022) packed a punch when it killed off David Arquette’s Dewey Riley, the impact of killing someone like Giles could cement a new series of Buffy as an all-time great.
It’s unclear whether a new series of Buffy the Vampire Slayer will keep the canon of seasons 8 to 12 and whether it will even extend beyond a single season, but the reinvigorated success of the Scream movies gives hope to the idea that it can live up to the legacy of the original. Like Scream took some time away to gather its thoughts, audiences will be hoping that the long-awaited Buffy the Vampire Slayer revival can come back stronger than ever.
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Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Action
Comedy
Drama
Horror
Supernatural
Release Date
1997 – 2003
Network
The WB
Showrunner
Joss Whedon
Directors
Joss Whedon
Writers
Joss Whedon
Cast
See All
Sarah Michelle Gellar
Buffy Summers
Nicholas Brendon
Alexander Harris
Alyson Hannigan
Willow Rosenberg
Anthony Stewart Head
Rupert Giles
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Fuente: successacademy.edu.vn
Categorías: Trend
